April 19, 2012 Issue
10
Special session drew more than 100 By RICH KEITH Four Points News More than 125 Four Points and Lakeway residents attended a special meeting at Lakeway City Hall on Saturday to weigh in on Austin Energy’s proposed rate increases. It was standing-room special session called by the Austin City Council with all of the Coun- cil members present including Mayor Lee Leffingwell. e City of Lakeway hosted the session, and the Austin City Council absorbed discussion and public comment regarding the proposed Austin Energy rate increase as it pertains to rate- payers who reside or are located outside the city limits of Austin. e first to speak was Austin Energy General Manager Larry Weis. He described the financial structure of the utility and how it is tied to the City of Austin’s gen- eral fund, and included a defense of the proposed rate increase. But most at the meeting chal- lenged the proposed rates includ- ing members of two advocacy groups: Homeowners United for Rate Fairness or HURF, which supports suburban or out-of-city ratepayers, and Steiner Ranch Neighborhood Association or SRNA, which was formed ear- lier this year to represent local neighborhoods. Local residents who spoke op- pose the transfer to the City of Austin of $150 million in Austin Energy revenues for non-utility purposes. ey also oppose the proposed “five tier” rate struc- ture. HURF Executive Director Mark Farrar critiqued AE’s pro- posed “progressive” rate struc- ture, which has five tiers. “e structure would punish large families and the owners of large homes, even if they made energy efficiency improvements,” he said, noting that a similar rate structure was abandoned by a major electric utility in Califor- nia because it was too complex and unfair. SRNA chairman and HURF Member Brian ompto said the proposed five tier progres- sive rate structure “would not achieve any of the goals claimed by AE, and that upper rate tiers would simply subsidize the low- er tiers.” SRNA member Brian Cliſton said that Austin Energy was neg- ligent by not increasing rates in- crementally. HURF Member Emilio Nico- las stated that AE’s transfer of millions in revenues to Austin’s general fund at 15 percent is far higher than the industry norm of 6 percent. HURF Board member Dick Brown pointed out that AE adds a 15 percent undisclosed sur- charge to the bills of suburban ratepayers, which are used to pay for services specifically for Aus- tin residents. On average, Brown said, “every suburban household pays $400 in surcharges to AE.” He opposes the argument that suburban ratepayers should pay a surcharge because they “owe” Austin for providing the streets and other services used by out- of-city customers when they visit Austin. Some 238,000 Travis County residents live outside the City and they, too, use Austin’s servic- es, “so why shouldn’t all of them pay a 15 percent surcharge - in- stead of singling out the 55,000 out-of-city suburban customers of Austin Energy,” Brown asked. HURF Legal Counsel Roger Borgelt said the proposed rate increase is excessive because it is based on unjustifiable costs as- sumed by AE. If the issues raised by HURF are not addressed by the City Council, there will be a Texas Public Utility Commission appeal. “We have the petitions draſted, and we will be ready to file the appeal,” he said. Travis Commissioner candi- CMYK Steiner Ranch Orthodontics Treatment for Children, Teens & Adults Call for your Complimentary Exam Central Austin Steiner Ranch Bastrop All Insurances 512-266-8585 www.BracesAustin.com Inside School.....................................3 Opinion ..................................4 Classifieds ..............................5 Sports ................................. 8-9 Find us on Facebook Texas is the finest portion of the globe that has blessed my vision! Sam Houston Serving Steiner Ranch, River Place, Volente, Grandview Hills, Westminster Glen and Lake Travis Volume 8, Issue 16 • 10 pages Thursday, April 19, 2012 • 50 cents Urgent Care ~ Now Open! 6618 Sitio Del Rio #A101 I Austin, TX 78730 512-241-1370 I www.hillcountrypediatrics.com We are now open Sunday aſternoons for sick visits by appointment only. You can call our office directly at 512-241-1370 between the hours of 1PM and 5PM to schedule an appointment with our nurse practitioner, Pat Budd, RN, CPNP. e phones turn on at 1PM. Way Cool Care for the Whole Family 512-501-6022 6414 River Place Blvd. Suite 101 Located in the Scott Felder Homes Building, Across from ACF wwww.coolcreekdental.com Finacing Available for Implants, Dentures, Wisom Teeth More! Complimentary Exam & X-Rays $ 180 Value Present This Coupon. Limitations apply. Expires 4/30/12 50% OFF Children’s Cleaning w/Flouride $ 89 Value for $45 Present This Coupon. Limitations apply. Expires 4/30/12 Adam Kristoff, DDS Mother’s Day Contest Read all about it on page 10. Leslee Bassman TRAIL, 6 ENERGY, 6 478-3376 (4PT-DERM) FOUR POINTS DERMATOLOGY Medical • Surgical • Cosmetic • Adult • P e d i a t r i c www.FourPointsDermatology.com Visit our website for our April Specials. Listen to your mom Schedule Your Skin Exam Roopal Bhatt, MD Board Certified Dermatologist As a result of a controversy between the City of Austin and River Place MUD over the trail’s encroachment onto preserve property, Board leaders chose to close the entire extension while a survey is conducted to determine its impact on endangered species of birds living in the preserve. Board closes entire Nature Trail extension during survey By LESLEE BASSMAN Four Points News Last week, visitors to the River Place Nature Trail extension were greeted by yellow caution tape and signage stating that the entire upper trail was temporarily closed. e Four Points News reported on March 29, that the City of Austin recently closed a portion of the trail extension as encroaching on Balcones Can- yonland Preserve, property it was entrusted to maintain on behalf of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. According to River Place Municipal Util- ity District (MUD) Board Secretary Art Jistal, this new development stems from the Board wanting to “appease Mr. (William) Conrad Officers responded to a crash involving a silver 2003 Toyota Camry at FM 2222 near Ribelin Ranch Drive at 2:22 a. m. on Monday, April 9, according to Austin Police Department re- ports. e vehicle was traveling northbound on FM 2222 when it leſt the roadway, struck a culvert and rolled over, killing 22-year- old Alesondra Norwalk. e driver was not wearing a seatbelt. Police are asking that anyone with information regarding this incident to contact APD Vehicu- lar Homicide Unit detectives at 512-974-4724. Leander Police drop investigation at school district’s request By LESLEE BASSMAN Four Points News Although Leander Indepen- dent School District staffers will not address personnel is- sues with the media, Four Points News, under the Texas Public Information Act, filed for the re- lease of signed documents which shed some light on the recent sudden resignation of long time Athletic Director Mike Bridges. e documents show that Bridges was placed on Adminis- trative Leave on January 6, 2012, and tendered his Letter of Resig- nation to LISD on February 8. On January 6, the same day that Bridges was placed on leave, the Leander Police Department opened their own investigation involving an incident of LISD employee theſt of an all-terrain vehicle valued at $7500 and over $600 in cash. LISD Communi- cations Director Veronica So- pher stated that the district had completed its investigation on February 8, 2012, the same date that Bridges resigned from his position. e police department closed their investigation at the request of the school district which no longer wanted to prosecute the incident, said Detective Allan Jones of the Leander Police De- partment. On February 9, 2012, the Dis- trict accepted Bridges’ resigna- tion and entered into a Resigna- tion and Severance Agreement with the former AD. Bridges will continue to receive his salary and benefits but is not allowed to set foot on school district prop- erty until his resignation is effec- tive on April 30. e agreement provides that the documents re- lated to Bridges and the reason for his resignation are placed in a confidential file and won’t be released except “as required by law.” In exchange, Bridges agreed to not sue LISD for any matter pertaining to his employ- ment or resignation, documents state. e basis for any potential legal action by Bridges is not ad- dressed by these documents. Other documents show that Bridges’ resignation was again accepted on February 14, 2012, by LISD Superintendent Bret Champion. By LYNETTE HAALAND Four Points News e Vandegriſt High School Varsity Boy’s Soccer team be- came District 4A Regional Quarterfinal Champs and Re- gion Semi-Finalists over the past week. “ey ended up one of the Top 16 teams in the state,” said Chad Aldrich, VHS Head Boys Soccer Coach. 4A has 208 boy’s soccer teams that make the playoffs and 336 overall teams that com- pete, he said. is is the farthest a Viper team sport has gone in the playoffs. Individual VHS stu- dent athletes have gone farther in swimming, tennis and cross country. “I’m really proud of the whole team and I’m especially proud of the seniors, to do something that’s never been done here,” said Drew Sanders, VHS Athletic Coordinator. “e boys finished with five championships in their third year program,” Aldrich said. is season’s titles: District Champs (beat Cedar Park 2-1) Bi-District Champs (beat Aus- tin Travis 1-0) Area Champs (beat Lehman 4-3) Sectional Champs (beat Vista Ridge 4-0) Regional Quarterfinal Champs (beat last year’s state champion Boerne Champion 3-1) Region Semi-Finalist (lost to Valley View 0-3) Chris Ross, athletic coordi- nator and head football coach at Cedar Park High School, was named Leander ISD Athletic Director last week. “On behalf of LISD, we are excited to welcome Chris as the district’s director of athletics. His holistic approach to edu- cation, which encompasses a deep commitment to students’ personal and academic growth, supports the culture and goals of LISD,” said Leander ISD su- perintendent Bret Champion. Ross earned a bachelor’s de- gree from Texas Tech Univer- sity in Lubbock. During his 18- year career, Ross has led teams to numerous championships, served as President of the Cen- tral Texas Coaches Association in 2010 and was named Coach of the Year in 2006, 2009 and 2010. Ross came to CPHS from Wichita Falls in 2005. He led Cedar Park to a 57-25 record in his seven seasons with the Tim- berwolves. Cedar Park reached the quarterfinal round of the Class 4A, Division I playoffs in each of the past two seasons. “As Athletic Director, we are confident that Chris’ proven leadership and passion for ath- letics will build upon our excel- lent programs and positively benefit the students, parents, staff and community of LISD,” Champion said. Ross replaces Mike Bridges, who resigned. Documents link former LISD Athletic Director, Mike Bridges, to closed property theſt case New LISD Athletic Director named Community challenges Austin Energy rate hike Austin’s 22nd traffic fatality of 2012 happens in Four Points River Place MUD Board looks to experts for nature trail advice Steiner Ranch’s Mark Farrar is Executive Director of HURF and he critiqued Austin Energy’s proposed “progressive” rate structure, which has five tiers. Austin Energy proposes raising rates for its 400,000 customers. Large homes that use an average of 6,269 kilowatt-hours a month over a year would see rates rise about $154 a month. Boy’s Soccer goes farther than any Viper team sport Les Stobart The victorious Vipers come to the sideline to salute their fans after their fourth round win against Boerne Champion. Read more about the game on page 8. Rob Carruthers
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Four Points News April 19, 2012 Issue
Transcript of April 19, 2012 Issue
Special session drew more than 100By RICH KEITHFour Points News
More than 125 Four Points and Lakeway residents attended a special meeting at Lakeway City Hall on Saturday to weigh in on Austin Energy’s proposed rate increases. It was standing-room special session called by the Austin CityCouncil with all of the Coun-cil members present including Mayor Lee Leffingwell. The City of Lakeway hosted the session, and the Austin City Council absorbed discussion and public comment regarding the proposed Austin Energy rate increase as it pertains to rate-payers who reside or are located outside the city limits of Austin. The first to speak was Austin Energy General Manager Larry Weis. He described the financial structure of the utility and how it is tied to the City of Austin’s gen-eral fund, and included a defense of the proposed rate increase. But most at the meeting chal-lenged the proposed rates includ-ing members of two advocacy groups: Homeowners United for Rate Fairness or HURF, which supports suburban or out-of-city ratepayers, and Steiner Ranch Neighborhood Association or SRNA, which was formed ear-lier this year to represent local neighborhoods. Local residents who spoke op-pose the transfer to the City of Austin of $150 million in Austin Energy revenues for non-utility purposes. They also oppose the proposed “five tier” rate struc-ture.
HURF Executive Director Mark Farrar critiqued AE’s pro-posed “progressive” rate struc-ture, which has five tiers. “The structure would punish large families and the owners of large homes, even if they made energy efficiency improvements,” he said, noting that a similar rate structure was abandoned by a major electric utility in Califor-nia because it was too complex and unfair. SRNA chairman and HURF Member Brian Thompto said the proposed five tier progres-sive rate structure “would not achieve any of the goals claimed by AE, and that upper rate tiers would simply subsidize the low-er tiers.” SRNA member Brian Clifton said that Austin Energy was neg-
ligent by not increasing rates in-crementally. HURF Member Emilio Nico-las stated that AE’s transfer of millions in revenues to Austin’s general fund at 15 percent is far higher than the industry norm of 6 percent. HURF Board member Dick Brown pointed out that AE adds a 15 percent undisclosed sur-charge to the bills of suburban ratepayers, which are used to pay for services specifically for Aus-tin residents. On average, Brown said, “every suburban household pays $400 in surcharges to AE.” He opposes the argument that suburban ratepayers should pay a surcharge because they “owe” Austin for providing the streets and other services used by out-of-city customers when they
visit Austin. Some 238,000 Travis County residents live outside the City and they, too, use Austin’s servic-es, “so why shouldn’t all of them pay a 15 percent surcharge - in-stead of singling out the 55,000 out-of-city suburban customers of Austin Energy,” Brown asked. HURF Legal Counsel Roger Borgelt said the proposed rate increase is excessive because it is based on unjustifiable costs as-sumed by AE. If the issues raised by HURF are not addressed by the City Council, there will be a Texas Public Utility Commission appeal. “We have the petitions drafted, and we will be ready to file the appeal,” he said. Travis Commissioner candi-
CMYKSteiner Ranch Orthodontics
Treatment for Children, Teens & AdultsCall for your Complimentary Exam
Central Austin Steiner Ranch Bastrop All Insurances
512-266-8585 www.BracesAustin.com
InsideSchool .....................................3Opinion ..................................4Classifieds ..............................5Sports ................................. 8-9
Find us on Facebook
Texas is the finest portion of the globe that has blessed my vision! Sam Houston
Serving Steiner Ranch, River Place, Volente, Grandview Hills, Westminster Glen and Lake TravisVolume 8, Issue 16 • 10 pages Thursday, April 19, 2012 • 50 cents
Urgent Care ~ Now Open!
6618 Sitio Del Rio #A101 I Austin, TX 78730 512-241-1370 I www.hillcountrypediatrics.com
We are now open Sunday afternoons for sick visits by appointment only. You can call our office directly
at 512-241-1370 between the hours of 1PM and 5PM to schedule an appointment with our nurse practitioner,
Pat Budd, RN, CPNP. The phones turn on at 1PM.
Way Cool Care for the Whole Family
512-501-60226414 River Place Blvd. Suite 101
Located in the Scott Felder Homes Building, Across from ACF wwww.coolcreekdental.comFinacing Available for Implants, Dentures, Wisom Teeth More!
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Adam Kristoff, DDS
Mother’s Day
ContestRead all about it on page 10.
Leslee Bassman
TRAIL, 6
ENERGY, 6
478-3376 (4PT-DERM) FOUR POINTS
DERMATOLOGY Medical • Surgical • Cosmetic • Adult • Pediatric
www.FourPointsDermatology.com
Visit our website for our April Specials.
Listen to your momSchedule Your Skin Exam
Roopal Bhatt, MDBoard Certified Dermatologist
As a result of a controversy between the City of Austin and River Place MUD over the trail’s encroachment onto preserve property, Board leaders chose to close the entire extension while a survey is conducted to determine its impact on endangered species of birds living in the preserve.
Board closes entire Nature Trail extension during survey
By LESLEE BASSMANFour Points News
Last week, visitors to the River Place Nature Trail extension were greeted by yellow caution tape and signage stating that the entire upper trail was temporarily closed. The Four Points News reported on March 29, that the City of Austin recently closed a portion of the trail extension as encroaching on Balcones Can-yonland Preserve, property it was entrusted to maintain on behalf of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. According to River Place Municipal Util-ity District (MUD) Board Secretary Art Jistal, this new development stems from the Board wanting to “appease Mr. (William) Conrad
Officers responded to a crash involving a silver 2003 Toyota Camry at FM 2222 near Ribelin Ranch Drive at 2:22 a. m. on Monday, April 9, according to Austin Police Department re-ports. The vehicle was traveling northbound on FM 2222 when it left the roadway, struck a culvert and rolled over, killing 22-year-old Alesondra Norwalk. The driver was not wearing a seatbelt. Police are asking that anyone with information regarding this incident to contact APD Vehicu-lar Homicide Unit detectives at 512-974-4724.
Leander Police drop investigation at school
district’s requestBy LESLEE BASSMAN
Four Points News
Although Leander Indepen-dent School District staffers will not address personnel is-sues with the media, Four Points News, under the Texas Public Information Act, filed for the re-lease of signed documents which shed some light on the recent sudden resignation of long time Athletic Director Mike Bridges.
The documents show that Bridges was placed on Adminis-trative Leave on January 6, 2012, and tendered his Letter of Resig-nation to LISD on February 8. On January 6, the same day that Bridges was placed on leave, the Leander Police Department opened their own investigation involving an incident of LISD employee theft of an all-terrain vehicle valued at $7500 and over $600 in cash. LISD Communi-cations Director Veronica So-pher stated that the district had completed its investigation on February 8, 2012, the same date that Bridges resigned from his
position. The police department closed their investigation at the request of the school district which no longer wanted to prosecute the incident, said Detective Allan Jones of the Leander Police De-partment. On February 9, 2012, the Dis-trict accepted Bridges’ resigna-tion and entered into a Resigna-tion and Severance Agreement with the former AD. Bridges will continue to receive his salary and benefits but is not allowed to set foot on school district prop-erty until his resignation is effec-tive on April 30. The agreement
provides that the documents re-lated to Bridges and the reason for his resignation are placed in a confidential file and won’t be released except “as required by law.” In exchange, Bridges agreed to not sue LISD for any matter pertaining to his employ-ment or resignation, documents state. The basis for any potential legal action by Bridges is not ad-dressed by these documents. Other documents show that Bridges’ resignation was again accepted on February 14, 2012, by LISD Superintendent Bret Champion.
By LYNETTE HAALANDFour Points News
The Vandegrift High School Varsity Boy’s Soccer team be-came District 4A Regional Quarterfinal Champs and Re-gion Semi-Finalists over the past week. “They ended up one of the Top 16 teams in the state,” said Chad Aldrich, VHS Head Boys Soccer Coach. 4A has 208 boy’s soccer teams that make the playoffs and 336 overall teams that com-pete, he said. This is the farthest a Viper team sport has gone in the playoffs. Individual VHS stu-dent athletes have gone farther in swimming, tennis and cross country. “I’m really proud of the
whole team and I’m especially proud of the seniors, to do something that’s never been done here,” said Drew Sanders, VHS Athletic Coordinator. “The boys finished with five championships in their third year program,” Aldrich said.
This season’s titles:District Champs (beat Cedar Park 2-1)Bi-District Champs (beat Aus-tin Travis 1-0)Area Champs (beat Lehman 4-3)Sectional Champs (beat Vista Ridge 4-0)Regional Quarterfinal Champs (beat last year’s state champion Boerne Champion 3-1)Region Semi-Finalist (lost to Valley View 0-3)
Chris Ross, athletic coordi-nator and head football coach at Cedar Park High School, was named Leander ISD Athletic Director last week. “On behalf of LISD, we are excited to welcome Chris as the district’s director of athletics. His holistic approach to edu-cation, which encompasses a deep commitment to students’ personal and academic growth, supports the culture and goals of LISD,” said Leander ISD su-perintendent Bret Champion. Ross earned a bachelor’s de-gree from Texas Tech Univer-sity in Lubbock. During his 18-year career, Ross has led teams to numerous championships, served as President of the Cen-tral Texas Coaches Association
in 2010 and was named Coach of the Year in 2006, 2009 and 2010. Ross came to CPHS from Wichita Falls in 2005. He led Cedar Park to a 57-25 record in his seven seasons with the Tim-berwolves. Cedar Park reached the quarterfinal round of the Class 4A, Division I playoffs in each of the past two seasons. “As Athletic Director, we are confident that Chris’ proven leadership and passion for ath-letics will build upon our excel-lent programs and positively benefit the students, parents, staff and community of LISD,” Champion said. Ross replaces Mike Bridges, who resigned.
Documents link former LISD Athletic Director, Mike Bridges, to closed property theft case
New LISD Athletic Director named
Community challenges Austin Energy rate hike
Austin’s 22nd traffic fatality of 2012 happens in Four Points
River Place MUD Board looks to experts for nature trail advice
Steiner Ranch’s Mark Farrar is Executive Director of HURF and he critiqued Austin Energy’s proposed “progressive” rate structure, which has five tiers. Austin Energy proposes raising rates for its 400,000 customers. Large homes that use an average of 6,269 kilowatt-hours a month over a year would see rates rise about $154 a month.
Boy’s Soccer goes farther than any Viper team sport
Les Stobart
The victorious Vipers come to the sideline to salute their fans after their fourth round win against Boerne Champion.
Read more about the game on page 8.
Rob Carruthers
Page 2 • Four Points News, Thursday, April 19, 2012
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4300 N. Quinlan Park Rd., #215, Austin, TX 78732 • 512-284-9849North Austin Mathnasium, 10401 Anderson Mill Rd., #109A, Austin, TX 78750 • 512-331-MATH (6284)
We Are Math Specialists.Mathnasium is a learning center in your neighborhood where kids go to catch up, keep up, and get ahead in math. The Mathnasium Method was developed over 30 years of hands on instruction.
Mathnasium is Tutoring That Works.Sophisticated assessments shape a customized learning program for each student. At each lesson, passionate, specially-trained instructors provide one-on-one teaching to ensure success. Learn More at Mathnasium.com
Mathnasium achieves outstandingresults in just 6 to 12 months.
- Personal Attention- Grades 1-12
- One Low Monthly Fee
Special Offer!Free Assessment* ($99.00 value)
* with registration
(512) 284-9849
We Are Math Specialists.Mathnasium is a learning center in your neighborhood where kids go to catch up, keep up, and get ahead in math. The Mathnasium Method was developed over 30 years of hands on instruction.
Mathnasium is Tutoring That Works.Sophisticated assessments shape a customized learning program for each student. At each lesson, passionate, specially-trained instructors provide one-on-one teaching to ensure success. Learn More at Mathnasium.com
Now enrolling for summer.Ask us about our Summer camps.
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A summer of Science Discovery… starts at School in the Hills
Join the Quest! All children ages 3 years old through 4th grade are welcome. School in the Hills will spend the summer observing, investigating and experimenting in a fun environment. Enroll your child in Discovery in the Hills for a single camp, several weeks or all summer. Primary Camps for children ages 3 – 6. Leadership Camps for children currently in 1st – 4th grade. Visit schoolinthehills.com/summer for more information.
Call 512-266-6160 to schedule a tour or to reserve a spot for this summer.
Join Us for an Open HouseSaturday, April 21st from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union held its Four Points Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting ceremony on Wednes-day at its first in-store location in Randalls at Quinlan Crossing in Steiner Ranch. Established in 1952 to serve personnel at Randolph Air Force Base, Randolph-Brooks has ex-panded to include more than 1,900 select groups and individu-als today. The credit union has assets exceeding $4.9 billion and serves more than 385,000 mem-bers from 40 branches in Texas.This local branch is RBFCU's 13th in Greater Austin. “By offering an in-store branch (in Steiner), we’re making finan-cial management even easier for our members,” said Mark Mat-thews, business development director for RBFCU. “Local resi-dents can stop in to the store, then walk out with both their groceries and with savings on their financial products and services.” The credit union staff will pro-vide a full slate of financial prod-ucts as services, and will focus on building relationships with mem-bers who frequent the store.
Lines were long on Saturday at the new Four Points Schlotzsky's at the Trails at 620. Promotions said that the first 100 people to buy Cinnabon 6-pack would get a free Schlotzsky's sandwich each week for one year.
Sarah Balman, Vandegrift High School senior art student, is in advanced drawing and painting classes. “My favorite part about being involved is the direc-tion and guidance I receive. Before every project the class is shown examples by well-known artists and from our teacher. We are also given requirements to
help us stay focused on the new style we are learning. I myself have benefitted from by discovering new ways to use my creativity,” Balman said. Her artwork is titled “Velociraptor” and was made with pen and ink on white paper, using scribbles and text to shade in the figure.
Breakfast 7-11am, Lunch & Dinner ‘til 8pmJust 10 min from Four Points, River Place or Steiner
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Randolph-Brooks opens in-store branch
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Four PointsSchlotzsky’s promotion caused long lines
Lynette Haaland
By LESLEE BASSMANFour Points News
Leander ISD seniors Kristin Young of Rouse High School and Tawni Myers of Cedar Park High School carry themselves with a confidence and calmness which escapes many Austin teenagers. Their futures are already planned with Young entering Baylor Uni-versity’s business and marketing program and Myers destined for the Air Force following her stud-ies at Texas Christian University this fall. The two young ladies donned their Air Force Junior ROTC uniforms and joined Vista Ridge’s equally impressive Navy Junior ROTC Cadets Matthew Altman and Andrew Bartlik to present their programs’ yearly reviews at the April 5 LISD board meeting.
Statistics revealed that enroll-ment in both of the district’s Ju-nior ROTC programs are on the upswing and, historically, the two outfits continue to receive national accolades. LISD’s Air Force JROTC has been recog-nized as a “Distinguished Unit” for the past seven years. Accord-ing to Young and Myers, the pro-gram is 95% student led, planned and executed, with the teens owning any mistakes. Finally, the course environment is among the best in the State, with two classrooms, four offices, confer-ence room and a logistics room. Altman and Bartlik stated that members of the district’s Navy JROTC program worked tire-lessly for the Central Texas com-munity this past year, amassing over 2,600 service and volunteer hours as well as raising funds for
the Federation for Suicide Pre-vention and leading a canned food drive. Their Color Guard won the Texas High School Bas-ketball Tournament this season and the Bottle Rocketry team received “Best in Show” at the Bowie High School competition. Five of last year’s seniors received college scholarships and many of the district’s members plan to attend Leadership Camp and Leadership Basic Training this summer. “We want them (high school students) to know there’s some-thing else out there,” said Altman of his ROTC program. Currently, LISD’s JROTC courses are scheduled at Leander and Vista Ridge High Schools with transportation available from other district schools. Coalition of Clubs (C2) set to
hit Amazon Booksellers web-site with “Riding Shotgun” With the sponsorship of Lean-der High School staffers, Sarah Ambrus and Christine Simpson, a program which initially started as an anti-bullying campaign with only nine students has flourished to 16 LISD campuses as well as a published book slated to be available on www.amazon.com later this month. The LISD school board wel-comed Ambrus and Simpson, along with Leander High School contributing authors and C2 members, to discuss the group’s successes at this month’s plan-ning meeting. “We wanted to share our sto-ry and our journey,” said Em-ily Roberts of C2’s book, “Riding Shotgun”. Ambrus stated that the book’s
name stems from a comparison of guiding a group of students to a teen driving a car for the first time. “They’re taking a risk but you have to guide them,” Ambrus said. “C2 is student-led; that’s why the (book’s) dedication is to them.” Recently, Ambrus and Simp-son have been contacted by schools outside of LISD for in-formation on how to form a sim-ilar organization. “This conversation about bullying is happening a lot,” said LISD Board President Bret Champion. Its nationally rec-ognized and this is something the community is continuing to work on, he added. LISD is planning to devote three sessions of its upcoming ‘Connecting U’ program to bul-
lying as well as sponsoring an anti-bullying mini-conference in May. LISD trademark program update Veronica Sopher, LISD Com-munications Director, has re-ceived numerous calls and con-tacts about the district’s planned trademark program application to elementary schools. “Based off feedback of visiting with PTA volunteers over a year ago, the elementary schools don’t sell retail logo items,” Sopher said. Sopher confirmed that the new trademark licensing pro-gram will not apply to the dis-trict’s elementary schools. For more information on this program, please go to http://www.leanderisd.org/default.aspx?name=trademarking.
Last week I attended Vista Ridge High School’s Navy Junior ROTC “Pass-In-Review” for their Annual Military Inspection. As I, along with VRHS Principal Paul Johnson and other members of the campus community, proudly watched students march in uni-son while executing precise ma-neuvers, I was reminded of the phenomenal role that Leander ISD’s two JROTC programs play in helping build our students into this country’s future leaders. Even though the Navy JROTC program is fairly new to LISD, only having begun at VRHS dur-ing the 2009-2010 school year with 55 students, it has made a distinctive mark on the campus. Those involved in the program are known to be men and women of character and discipline. This year, the program is home to 136 cadets, nine of whom are seniors. One student, Cadet Lieutenant Jason Sherwood, received an ap-pointment to the Naval Academy (worth over $400,000), and a
number of others are bound for various branches of the Armed Services. The mission of the NJROTC program is “to instill in students the value of citizenship, service to the United States, personal responsibility and a sense of ac-complishment.” This mission is carried out by developing in-formed and responsible citizens and growing their leadership potential; instilling their respect for and an understanding of the need for constituted authority in a democratic society; and pro-moting patriotism and habits of orderliness and precision. It isn’t easy to be a cadet in the NJROTC program. The curricu-lum focuses on citizenship and leadership development, our na-tion’s maritime heritage, the sig-nificance of sea power and naval topics such as the fundamentals of naval operations, seamanship, navigation and meteorology. In addition, students are expected to participate in extracurricu-
lar activities, such as academic, athletic, drill and orienteering competitions, field meets, flights, marksmanship sports training and physical fitness training. Just down the road at Leander High School, our Air Force JROTC unit has 105 cadets active in the program. Since the program first began in LISD at LHS 12 years ago, it has become known for transforming high school students into pillars of service and honor. This year 14 seniors will graduate from the unit, nine of whom are col-lege bound, including David Ferry who was accepted to the Merchant Marine Academy, and five who are enlisting in various branches of the Armed Services. Additionally, the unit has been recognized as a Distinguished Unit seven times, a distinction given to top units around the
world for surpassing Air Force and school district expectations. The mission of the AFJROTC
program is to “develop citi-zens of charac-ter dedicated to serving their nation and c o m mu n i t y,” and is carried out through the
education and training of stu-dents in citizenship and life skills, promoting community service, instilling a sense of responsibil-ity, character and self-discipline through education and instruc-tion and the Air Force’s core val-ues: Integrity First, Service Before Self and Excellence In All We Do. Students in the AFJROTC pro-gram study aerospace science, leadership education and physi-cal fitness for life training. Class-room study includes heritage of flight, development of aerospace power, contemporary aviation, aerospace environment, human
requirements of flight, aerospace vehicles, principles of aircraft flight and navigation, space pro-grams, space technology, rock-etry, propulsion and aerospace industry. Students also compete in academic bowls, leadership symposiums and marching drills. The NJROTC and AFJROTC programs heavily incorporate community service into their activities. Our units support the Ronald McDonald House, hold canned food drives, contribute to the Capital Area Food Bank, visit residents in nursing homes and perform numerous other acts of stewardship. All totaled, LISD’s 241 cadets have spent 5,719 hours of their time serving our community. Our cadets are 21st Century learners who are academically successful; exercise personal and social responsibility; practice teamwork, ethics and communi-cation; and appreciate diversity. Clearly, students in these pro-grams demonstrate the ideals
noted in LISD’s Graduate Profile and 10 Ethical Principles, while maintaining a clear and consis-tent focus on student learning. In light of all of these qualities, it should come as no surprise that the VRHS NJROTCprogram passed their Annual Military Inspection last week with flying colors. Of the 158 in-spection items, six were marked “Average” and all others were marked “Above Average” or “Outstanding.” Congratulations to this outstanding group of stu-dents! We are exceedingly proud of all of our cadets, NJROTC in-structors Chief Warrant Officer Rocky Hulse and Master Chief RL Turner, and AFJROTC in-structors Major Terry Neidecker and Master Sgt. Ed Perez. The students these instructors guide are leaders of tomorrow and rep-resent the best of what LISD has to offer.
Four Points newswww.FourPointsNews.comschool thursday
April 19, 2012 • Page 3Four Points newswww.FourPointsNews.com
BRET CHAMPION
LISD’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps programs are building future leaders
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Above Right: Leander ISD seniors Kristin Young of Rouse High School and Tawni My-ers of Cedar Park High School are part of the successful LISD ROTC program.They joined two other cadets to present their programs’ yearly reviews at the April 5 LISD board meeting.
Above Left: With the sponsorship of Leander High School staffers, Sarah Ambrus and Christine Simpson, a program which initially started as an anti-bullying campaign with only nine students has flourished to 16 LISD campuses as well as a published book slated to be available on www.amazon.com later this month.The LISD school board welcomed Ambrus and Simpson, along with Leander High School contributing authors and C2 members, to discuss the group’s successes at this month’s planning meeting.
Left: C2 t-shirt
Right: Vista Ridge High School’s Navy Junior ROTC Cadets Matthew Altman and Andrew Bartlik presented their programs’ yearly reviews at the April 5 LISD board meeting.
LISD School Board Update : Junior ROTC programs applauded, C2 organization publishing anti-bullying book, and new trademark licensing does not apply to elementary schools
Photos by Leslee Bassman
Earth Day is on Sunday but many have already been celebrating Earth Week and even Earth Month. Steiner Ranch Elementary School hosted an e-recycling project last week prepar-ing for Earth Week where electronics of all sorts were dropped off. The electronic waste was collected by Global Environmental Ser-vices, a company owned by Steiner resident Kent Landry. GES believes in the maximum recovery process meaning their first goal is always to re-use a whole unit. If that is not feasible, due to the condition or age of the equip-ment, they look to reuse parts from that unit. As a last resort, GES breaks down ev-ery item and returns the original parts back to the manufacturing stream via their BAN e-Stewards approved downstream dili-gence. GES is a zero landfill recycler, which means anything you drop off will not end up in a landfill. (www.gesrecycles.com) Yay for a locally-owned company with a core business that stretches Earth Day into Earth Year. Earth Day was first observed in 1970. The first Proclamation of Earth Day was by San Francisco, the City of Saint Francis, patron saint of ecology, according to Wikipedia. United States Senator Gaylord Nelson, an environmental activist, took a leading role in organizing Earth Day after taking a trip to Santa Barbara in 1969 to see the results of an oil spill off the coast. For decades now, Earth Day has carried the same meaning: to increase awareness and appreciation of the Earth’s natural en-vironment. Earth Day is now celebrated in more than 175 countries every year. One of the Austin celebrations will be the
Austin Earth Day Festival held on April 22 from noon to 6 p.m. at the Mueller Devel-opment. The one-day festival is set to in-form, inspire and celebrate Austin as “The City of Green Ideas”. In celebration of Earth Month, we’ve been picking up trash on the Steiner Ranch trails. A few weeks ago, before my youngest broke her arm, we hit the trails with gloves on and bags to fill. We found lots of trash, especially near street drainage outlet ar-eas. We recycled 23 plastic bottles after our short hike. Everyone can do their part to take care of the beautiful Texas Hill Country we share.
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Publisher’s Point of View
LYNETTE HAALAND
Earth Day, Earth Week, Earth Month
Breyanna Weekly Pflugerville
Earth Day is a day to appreciate God’s creation.
What does Earth Day mean to you?Four Points oF View
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Four Points newsYour Community Newspaper
Published weekly in Four Points, Texas by Four Points News LLC.TELEPHONE: 512-380-1405 FAX: 512-355-1774
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Publisher & Editor ..................................................LYNETTE HAALAND - [email protected] Editor .....................................................LESLEE BASSMAN - [email protected] Sales Representative ...........................HOLLIE KENNEY - [email protected].............................................................................................. RICH KEITH - [email protected] Services ............................................................................................................................... JENNIFER ROBERTSCirculation .....................................................................................................................................................FRED FRANCOContributor ..............................................................................................................................................BRET CHAMPION
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Earth Day reminds me to be thankful for all of the nature around me.
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It means a day to cel-ebrate and to learn about protecting the earth.
Gavin Gurrola Grandview Hills
Earth Day helps raise awareness on how the earth needs help, about pollution and stuff.
Letters to the Editor:Four Points News welcomes all Letters to the Editor. All letters must be signed and include phone number for verification. Deadline is Friday before publication. Four Points News reserves the right to edit letters for clarity, length and for libelous or objectionable statements. Letters containing more than 400 words will be edited for length. Email: [email protected]
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Dear Editor, I always look forward to receiving the Four Points News (FPN) and, especially, enjoy articles related to our Four Points community. You are providing very posi-tive links for our community. With that background, I would like to point out a couple things in the April 12th edition of FPN.
Pets & Snakes:...don't mix. Thanks for this valuable article. I've also killed a Rat Snake while it was in the middle of engorg-ing a huge frog in our backyard - while our smaller dogs watched in confusion. Let me add that it would help for residents to under-stand that their tidiness - or lack thereof - can certainly impact their neighbors and the safety of their neigh-bors' pets. This is true regarding snakes, mosquitoes, etc. Let me add that I also have to keep after our own tidi-ness when it comes to snakes & mosquitoes.
Re: "Home sales, prices drop in Four Points in first quarter": My career background is Operational Analysis / Corp Financial Analysis. Thanks for the reporting, but your inclusion of that chart allowed me to make a better conclusion for myself. It is misleading - when quoting Real Estate figures - to quote "average" as an indicator when there are huge
disparities between Selling Prices. Thankfully, you in-cluded "Median Price" - which is a much better indica-tor for general trends. Here is the figure I'd quote as an indicator of how things are going for Real Estate in Four Points based on the figures you provided (thank you very much) to readers:
Q1 2011 Q1 2012Median $ Sales Price: 453,500 447,500Avg Sq Ft 3,747 3,385Median $ / Av Sq Ft 121 132
Average $ Sales Price 573,598 505,396Avg Sq Ft 3,747 3,385Avg $ / Avg Sq Ft 153 149
The best way to calculate the Median $ / Sq Ft would be to use the Median Sales Price (provided in article's Goldwasser Real Estate chart) and divide it by whatever the Median Square Footage of all home sales (which wasn't in the chart). Therefore, I used Average Sq Ft as the next-best.
Conclusion: Four Points is doing fine.
Thank you -Chuck Bulygo
Grandview Hills
Better way to calculate home sales data In celebration of Earth Day Erin Seitzler helped her family pick up trash on some of the Steiner Ranch trails a few weeks ago. In a short time they gathered a large bag full included 23 plastic bottles.
Are you ready?By KAREN HUBER
Travis County CommissionerGuest Columnist
April 17th is the one-year anniversary of the Pinnacle Fire in Oak Hill. This fire de-stroyed homes, displaced families, impacted many lives and scared central Texas into awareness of the very real threat of wildfires. The Labor Day Fires in Steiner Ranch, Spice-wood, Pflugerville and Bastrop put exclama-tion points on this fear. Hopefully, the La-bor Day fires were a worst-case scenario but wildfires will occur again, with no regard for time or place. Travis County, along with the City of Aus-tin, has declared April “Wildfire Awareness Month.” April is the start of the annual wild-fire season across the state, and the Texas Forest Service each year declares the second
week of April, ‘wildfire awareness week’ with due cause. Texas is one of the most wildfire prone states in the country, ranking alongside Cali-fornia and Arizona in the number of wild-fires. According to the Texas Interagency Coordinating Council, during fiscal year 2011 there were more than 30,000 fires in Texas that burned more than 3.9 million acres. These are not just statistics. We know these fires impact many people, properties and livelihoods – and remind us all of our own vulnerability. Out of the ashes and devastation last year, came an unprecedented sense of unity and cooperation to manage the recoveries and prepare for the future. In October, under my leadership, the County formed a Wildfire Preparedness Task Force to embrace the task of increasing wildfire preparedness, preven-tion, response and recovery at all levels. This
April is Wildfire Awareness Month
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Community Events
April 19 Four Points Chamber of Commerce Luncheon. Steve Zbranek, Speaker & Owner of Zbranek & Holt Custom Homes at River Place Country Club from 11:30 - 1pm
April 20 Leander ISD’s Fourth Annual Connecting U Conference at Hill Country Bible Church, 12124 RR 620, Austin - North-west Entrance from 8 a.m. - 2:15 p.m.
April 21
Greenbelt Fuel Reduction Workday McNelly Trail from 9am-2pm
April 22
Mighty Mini March Minis and Friends’ first annual char-ity walk at John Simpson Park from Noon until 3:00 p.m.
April 23 - 27 Steiner Spring Yard Waste Pick Up
April 26 Promesa Ribbon Cutting Cer-emony and Open House
April 28 Steiner Ranch Garage Sale
May 5Austin Arthritis Walk, Con-cordia University Texas, 11400 Concordia University Drive. Registration 8 AM, Walk 9 AM
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River Place Garden Club is hosting a Beautification Celebration fundraiser on Thursday, April 19, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the corner of Treasure Island Drive and River Place Blvd. Tickets are $10 and include wine and cheese appetizers plus the chance to bid at the event’s silent auction. For more information, contact club president Becky Wolfe at [email protected].
Local students can log community ser-vice hours this weekend in Steiner Ranch. The Steiner Ranch Firewise committee has organized a brush cleanup in a green-belt area close to location of the burned homes in Steiner Ranch. As is becoming well known, the dead, dry brush in the greenbelt acts as fuel during a wildfire. Firewise has shown that their process of clearing and remov-ing brush can prevent the spread of fires. Local Firewise volunteers will be on site to help and direct the activity. The job is to haul the dry brush to the dumpster lo-cated on the adjacent street.
Students involved in Vandegrift High School athletics, band, scouts, Nation-al Honor Society, Key Club, and many oth-ers can get credit for the hours they help. Sign in at the vol-unteer table so that your organization can be notified of your involvement. Students are not re-quired to sign up before the event. They just need to come properly attired to
avoid poison ivy and scratches. Must be at least 13 years old. Date: Saturday, April 21Time: 9am-2pmWhat: McNelly Trail Greenbelt Fuel Re-duction WorkdayWhere: McNelly Trail, Steiner Ranch
Help needed: assist in hauling dry brush from greenbelt to dumpsters at street.
Attire: Proper coverage, feet completely covered (boots would be best,no sandals or flip flops), long slacks and sleeves, work gloves. Contact: Amanda Marks, (512) 266-8414Directions: Enter Steiner Ranch at Quin-lan Park Road, turn right at traffic light at Steiner Ranch Boulevard. Go through stop sign at Latimer, turn right at Epper-son. Top of McNelly at right. There will be no parking on McNelly; instead park on Epperson and walk in on McNelly. Check in at Volunteer Station in middle of street.
Break out your poodle skirts and hair gel! Four Points Middle School’s Fine Arts Department is thrilled to bring its musical, “Grease: School Edition” to the Vandegrift High School stage on May 4-6. The production,written by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, is sure to delight audience and critics
alike with shows slated for 7:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, 2:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sun-day. Tickets are $5 for students and $8 for adults. Reservations can be made by calling Mrs. Morton at 512-570-3700 ext.13755. Tick-ets will also be sold at the door.
Now that Spring is here and you've prunned your trees and shrubs, the Steiner Ranch HOA has arranged to have TDS come by for a Spring Yard Waste Pick up next week: April 23rd - 27th
During your normal trash day, you are allowed to place a maximum of 20 leaf bags or brush bun-dles at your curb, along with your normal trash can. Each bag should not weigh more than 30 lbs.
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River Place Beautification Celebration this week
Firewise community service opportunity for students this Sat.
Steiner Spring Yard Waste Pick Up next week
FPMS musical production of “Grease: School Edition” set for May 4 - 6
On April 22, local dog walk-ing service, Gusto Dogs, is host-ing a group walk on the Lady Bird Lake Hike and Bike Trail to benefit Austin Pets Alive! shelter organization. The event starts at 10:00 a.m. and is the first in a series of community activities which will aid the nonprofit pet rescue group as well as provide an opportunity for all of Austin’s residents, human and canine, to meet and explore the city’s
dog-friendly side. Future events include scenic trail hikes and a pooch paddle. “Once I started volunteering for Austin Pets Alive!, I rec-ognized how many lives they save and how much support they need in order to do it,” said Kristen West, Gusto Dogs owner and Austin Pets Alive! volunteer. “I thought this might be a fun way to continue to raise money and awareness for them
while getting out and about in dog-crazy Austin”. According to West, all admis-sion fees for the event, $10 for individuals or $20 for families, will be donated to Austin Pets Alive!. To learn more about Gusto Dogs’ community events and register for the walk, visit www.gustodogs.com and click on “Community Gusto” or call 512-940-1926.
When ‘man’s best friend’ needs a little help
John Simpson Park and Com-munity Center hosts inaugural family and pets charity walk. Tagged the “Mighty Mini March” by event organizers, John Simpson Park is the perfect set-ting for local non-profit Minis and Friends’ first annual charity walk benefitting the miniature equine guided interactions ther-apy group which serves Austin area residents with special needs. Community members who come out for the festivities from noon until 3:00 p.m. on April 22 will be treated to a Pet Costume
Parade, silent auction, resource fair, food vendor booths and, of course, a herd of adorable minia-ture therapy horses! The 2K (1.2 miles) walk starts at 1:00 p.m. and participant fees are $20 for adults 13 years and up, $15 for youth ages five to 12 years old. The Pet Costume Pa-rade is free. Register at http://tinyurl.com/MightyMiniMarch. For more information, go to www.MinisAndFriends.org/might-yminimarch
Mighty Mini March in Steiner on Sunday
Austin’s annual Arthritis Walk® is scheduled for May 5 to coincide with National Arthritis Month and highlight the need for research funding of the disease, health education and government advo-cacy initiatives. The event is the main fundraising program for the Arthritis Foundation of Central Texas. “As a River Place resident, I am especially hon-ored to be the medical spokesperson for the event this year,” said Texas Orthopedics’ Rheumatologist
Dr. Robert Koval. Participants may run the three-mile or walk the one-mile course in honor of a friend or family member with arthritis, the nation’s most common cause of disability. Event registration begins at 8:00 a.m. on May 5 with the walk beginning at 9:00 a.m. Concordia University is located at 11400 Con-cordia University Drive, Austin, TX 78726. For more information, please see http://www.kintera.org/FAF/home/default.asp?ievent=995517
On Sunday, April 22, Con-cordia University Texas will host “Ben and I Play for Peace,” an instrumental concert in the classical and jazz styles featuring guest musician Ben Werdegar, a 14-year-old guitar prodigy from San Francisco, California. To date, Werdeger has raised more than $28,000 to provide wheel-chairs for disabled and injured children in Iraq through CNN Hero and Texan Brad Blauser’s organization, “Wheelchairs for Iraqi Kids”. This year’s event will benefit both “Wheelchairs for Iraqi Kids” and the “Wounded Warrior Project”. “Wheelchairs for Iraqi Kids”, was created in 2005 at the re-quest of United States enlisted
service members stationed in Mosul who observed children pulling themselves along the ground because their legs did not work. Due to the dire situ-ation in Iraq, there are no pro-grams to help these children with their disabilities. Joining Werdegar in concert will be Concordia Adjunct Mu-sic Professor Kim Perlak, the “I” in “Ben & I Play Peace”, and her colleagues on the Concordia in-strumental performance facul-ty. Benjamin Verdery, critically acclaimed guitarist, composer and Yale School of Music fac-ulty member, will also play with Werdegar during the concert. The McCallum Fine Arts Acad-emy Guitar Ensemble as well as
guitarists from Concordia Uni-versity, Austin Community Col-lege, and the University of Texas Butler School of Music will be featured. The program begins at 3:00 p.m. at Concordia University Texas, Building A Auditori-um,11400 Concordia University Drive, Austin, Texas. Suggested donations for this event are $20 for general admis-sion and $10 for students. Tick-ets may be reserved in advance by visiting www.kimperlak.co-mand and clicking on the “Ben & I Play for Peace” tab. For more information, please visit www.concordia.edu.
Concordia to host 2012 Austin Arthritis Walk, May 5
Concordia hosts Sunday concert benefitting two charities, April 22
date Gerald Daugherty was also at the meeting and suggested the city and suburban ratepay-ers work together to resolve their differences without going to the Texas Public Utility Commission. If they are not resolved, and should AE’s new rates be ap-pealed to the PUC, “The City’s general fund transfers could be jeopardized,” he warned. A number of suburban wa-ter utilities were represented at the meeting. WCID 17 Repre-sentatives spoke to raise aware-ness of the significant impact of AE's electric rates on water bills. WCID requested that suburban utilities be given spe-cial consideration similar to that given to school districts, or that they be allowed to get their electric power from other
sources. In closing the meeting, the Austin City Council thanked the audience for their input and promised to consider suburban
r a t e p ay e r s’ concerns in their upcom-ing rate-mak-ing decisions. A video r e c o r d i n g of the spe-
cial session can be found at http://austintx.swagit.com/play/04142012-501
community Four Points newswww.FourPointsNews.com
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The Queens of the Court team is ready to race in the Amazing Four Points Race to the Taste on June 9 start-ing and finishing at the Four Points Home Depot. Here the Queens are doing one of the pre-race accomplish-ments standing at the Four Points in-tersection with a sign for more than 10 minutes. The Queens could be eligible for one of the recently announced priz-es for the Amazing Four Points Race to the Taste:1st Prize: iPad 3’s to each of the Team members2nd Prize: Android Tablets to each of the Team members3rd Prize: $100 Dinner/ Movie Gift cards to each of the members
Many local cyclists will be a part of the estimated 13,000 who will participate in the 28th An-nual BP MS 150 on April 21 – 22. The two-day, 180-mile journey from Houston to Austin, sup-ports the National Multiple Scle-rosis Society in its quest to create a world free of multiple sclerosis (MS). This year’s goal is to raise $17 million to support MS re-search, programs and services. Jeff Johnson, who lives in the Canyon Creek area, will make the trek for the 7th time. He started riding as just something fun, but didn’t realize the extent of the benefits of the ride could bring to the 56,000 Texans affected by MS until he became related to someone who struggles with the
debilitating disease every day. His son recently married into a family where the mother, Phyl-lis, has battled with MS for more than 20 years. Because the dis-ease hits close to home for his son, the ride has become more personal to him. Johnson is humbled by all the new people who are challenged with the disease in some shape or form, and he is happy to endure pain for two days on a bike in hopes of helping so many people who deal with MS every day. He will be riding on Team Wheels of Love this year, and can’t wait to see the love from the crowd of people holding up signs thanking him and the other riders for their efforts this year.
Jeff Johnson, who lives in the Canyon Creek area, will ride with an estimated 13,000 who will participate in the 28th Annual BP MS 150 on April 21 – 22.The two-day, 180-mile journey from Houston to Austin, sup-ports the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
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The Queens of the Court are pictured here doing one of the pre-race accomplishments of getting a photo taken with a Travis County Sheriff’s Office officer.
Cyclists to ride in the BP MS 150 this weekend
Daniel Dorr raised about $30 with his lemonade stand recently to help raise money for his First Foundations Preschool class project. The class of 5 and 6 year olds are raising money to benefit Wheels For The World, a charity associated with Joni and Friends. His class originally had the goal to raise $150 or one wheelchair, however they are now up to over $1500 and 10 wheelchairs. The preschoolers are so excited about the money they have raised and the people who will be getting
the wheelchairs. Dorr has also raised addi-tional money helping with lawn work, taking in neighbor's trash cans, moving their morning newspaper to their front door and contributing some of his own money. His teacher, Deana Boggess, has put a butterfly on the school hall wall for every dollar the stu-dents have raised which makes their hallway look like the migra-tion of the monarch butterflies to Mexico, said Melissa Dorr, Dan-iel's mom.
First Foundations Lemonade Project
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because he was saying people are still walking on the trail close to Balcones Canyonland Preserve property”. Conrad currently serves as Manager of the Austin Water Utility’s Wildland Conserva-tion Division. Additionally, Jistal acknowl-edged that the Board recently hired Horizon Environmen-tal Services, Inc. to study the closed 2.5 mile section of the trail and determine if the path has an impact on the habitat of the endangered species of birds residing in the preserve. Depending on the results of the survey, the Board may hire an attorney to take their case to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, owners of the preserve property. Jistal is hopeful that the Board will have a successful ar-gument. “They’re (Horizon) saying that the trail is so narrow and so close to the golf course that it has little or no impact,” said Jistal, who won’t receive the re-sults of the six-week study for some time. “We’re hoping we can get everything done in the next two months.”
River Place MUD Board Treasurer Lee Wretlind stated that the survey and report costs about $4,000 to complete. Originally, construction costs of the entire 2010 trail extension totalled $150,000. Should the River Place MUD Board be denied access to the existing extension, additional costs including fees to repair the encroaching trail section back to its natural state and building out a new, legal trail section will accrue. In this month’s edition of “Your Pipeline”, the River Place MUD’s newsletter, board Presi-dent Jim Casey states that the district is planning to relocate the 1600 linear foot section of the trail which is at issue but must wait for the end of the golden-cheeked warblers’ mat-ing season in August. Casey stated to the Four Points News that he is unaware of how much the cost to move the trail will be. The first section of the na-ture trail remains open. The next meeting of the River Place MUD Board is on Tuesday, April 24 at 2:00 p.m. at the River Place Country Club.
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els. This multi-departmental and multi-organizational effort included representatives from Travis County departments, City of Austin (COA) departments, Emergency Services Districts, Austin Fire Department and other local and state agencies. A sample of the notable outcomes from this group includes the fol-lowing. Preparedness: The brochure “Ready, Set, Go!” was recreated for Central Texas and is available in printed form at fire stations and also can be downloaded from the Travis County website. Many Emergency Services Districts, including Lake Travis Fire & Res-cue, ESD 4, Oak Hill Fire Depart-ment, Westlake Fire Department
and others have community outreach educational programs for their respective jurisdictions. Enhanced wildfire training pro-grams have been expanded and the Task Force continues to de-velop a variety of programs and actions for education and mitiga-tion for wildland/urban interface challenges. Partnerships have been formed to move many of these efforts along faster and in more cost effective ways. Communications: Enhanced early communications for both responders and the public are now in place. These include im-proved communications between responders and early triggers for joint efforts that get those emer-gency communications systems
implemented. STAR Flight pro-vides GPS tracking of fire lines for responders on the ground that helps improve the response in areas that are difficult to ac-cess. Detailed fire information is available on Travis County’s web-site and many others and one of the most comprehensive is that of the Travis County Fire Marshall at www.co.travis.tx.us/fire_mar-shal. Travis County has hired an Emergency Services Public In-formation Officer and Facebook and Twitter are used daily as well as during wildfire emergencies. I encourage each of you to consider your own wildfire pre-paredness during this month. Obtain your copy of “Ready, Set, Go!” and assess your risks for fire.
Use this beautiful month of April, before the summer heat sets in, to become fire ready. Get your neighborhood involved in the be-ing a “Fire Wise” neighborhood. Contact your local fire depart-ment for their guidance. We all have a role in our safety and pre-paredness so let’s take advantage of the tools available to us during this “Wildfire Awareness Month.” Travis County Commissioner Karen Huber
Four Points Middle SchoolTheatre Department Presents…
Vandegrift High School Auditorium
• May 4th at 7pm• May 5th at 2pm & 7pm• May 6th at 2 pm
Ticket Prices: $8 for Adults and $5 for Students
Call Melody Morton at 512-570-3700 ext. 13755
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Book and Music by: JIM Jacobs and Warren Casey. Presented By Special Arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH INC
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Next week hear from autistic students in
Four PointsBy LYNETTE HAALAND
Four Points News
April is National Autism Awareness Month and research is showing how more diagnoses are being made. Earlier this month, Autism Research Group launched its pioneer non-profit organization highlighting its mission of plac-ing individuals on the autism spectrum and their families first. ARG is founded on the prin-cipal of using science to improve the quality of life for individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) as well as their families and caregivers. Individuals with ASD have the right to live life to the fullest and this right tran-
scends social, cultural, and eco-nomic barriers. “Our organization does re-search that matters to families of children with autism and our mission is to share the results with the world. ARG’s research findings will allow more families to access effective treatment,” said ARG Executive Director Jonathan Tarbox, PhD, BCBA-D. This launch coincides with the newly-released report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing one in every 88 children in America has an autism spectrum disorder; a 78 percent increase since the study first began in 2002. The latest figure reconfirms that autism is more prevalent than juvenile diabetes, childhood cancer, and pediatric AIDS combined. ASD is a range of complex neurodevelopmental disorders, characterized by social impair-
ments, communication chal-lenges, and restricted, repetitive, or stereotyped patterns of behav-ior. Autistic disorder is the most severe form of ASD, while other conditions along the spectrum include milder forms known as Asperger's syndrome, childhood disintegrative disorder and Per-vasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified. “Our first step in reaching out to families affected by autism is our Parent-Generated Research Initiative. It’s designed to give parents a voice on what matters most to them” said Tarbox. Parents can complete a 10-question survey at www.au-tismresearchgroup.org and ARG will use the input to design re-search programs that directly address the needs and preferenc-es of families affected by autism.
Organizers need community support
By LESLEE BASSMANFour Points News
As with so many inaugu-ral events at Vandegrift High School, the Four Points com-munity is banding together once more to support the first senior class’ Project Graduation event scheduled for June 3, 2012, at Northwest Austin’s Dave and Buster’s following the ceremony. The national program was started to provide graduating seniors with a fun, safe place to celebrate their last night togeth-er as high school students. The chaperoned all-night drug and alcohol free party is usually sup-
ported through local fundrais-ing efforts and donations.
“We are trying to promote the message that celebrating with-out alcohol and drugs is the smart choice for our kids,” said Vandegrift High School Project Graduation’s Suz Cox. “ The stu-dents get to take part in a night of fun events with music, games, food and prizes.” “Because this is our first grad-uating class at Vandegrift and our first Project Graduation we have a lot of work to do to get ready. This event is put together and paid for 100% by donations and fundraising efforts. We are looking to our community for their support with our inaugural Project Graduation.”
Planners for Project Gradu-ation are soliciting friends and neighbors for door prizes to be handed out during the event, including gift cards from local establishments such as Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Best Buy and Walmart, as well as in-kind goodies of ipods, ipads, idocks, televisions and other items which would be useful for col-lege freshmen. If you are able to donate for the program, please contact Suz Cox at [email protected]. All donations are tax deductible. For more information regard-ing Vandegrift’s Project Gradua-tion, please go tohttp://vandegrift.my-pta.org/content.asp?PageID=13.
In recognition of Alcohol Awareness Month, the Texas Al-coholic Beverage Commission has been posting messages and information related to the con-sequences of underage drinking and Zero Tolerance Laws on its Facebook page. The postings will highlight information for minors, parents and community members re-lated to underage drinking and promote new campaigns to assist
communities in enforcing the alcoholic beverage laws. TABC encourages those interested in education and preventionefforts to "Like" the page to learn more about research, en-forcement efforts and efforts by TABC to prevent violations of the Alcoholic Beverage Code. According to the Nation-al Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc. (NCADD), reducing underage
drinking is critical to securing a healthy future for America's youth and requires a coopera-tive effort from parents, schools, community organizations, busi-ness leaders, government agen-cies, the entertainment industry, alcohol manufacturers/retailers and young people. Annually, about 5,000 people under age 21 die from alcohol-related in-cidents and many more are in-jured.
"We can't afford to ignore this public safety issue," said TABC Education Division Director Mindy Carroll. "The youth of today are our future and we must do everything we can to keep them alcohol-free until they are 21." The TABC can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/txabc.
National Autism Awareness Month brings focus to autism spectrum disorders
communityFour Points newswww.FourPointsNews.com
thursdayApril 19, 2012 • Page 7
Vipers ready for first Project Graduation June 3
TABC recognizes April as Alcohol Awareness Month
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stars oF the weekthursdayPage 8 • April 19, 2012
Four Points newswww.FourPointsNews.com
Will Emerick - SophomoreFavorite part about being involved in Viper Lacrosse: I enjoy playing lacrosse with my friends. It is a fast paced full contact sport. I also like how the coaches push us to become better as a team. I am really looking forward to the playoffs this season.
Maria Popov - JuniorFavorite part about being involved in Viper Tennis:I love how close we are and the good memories we make together.
Harrison Field - SophomoreFavorite part about being involved in Viper Golf:My favorite part of participating in Viper Golf is improving my golf game and going to tournaments.
Xavier Doxie - JuniorFavorite part about being involved in Viper Track:I love to run!
Nikki Keys - FreshmanFavorite part about being involved in Viper Track:My favorite part about track is the adrenaline rush I get every time I race and the feeling I get when I get my best time!
Alex Kotlarz - SeniorFavorite part about being involved in Viper Track:Getting to throw the discus and competing against different people across the state.
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LACRSSE
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TRACK
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Right: (pictured from lrft to right) Dani Siek, Coach Matt Wernecke, Chandler Thomas, Emily Garbutt, Mia Chiarelli, Megan Rue, Erin Fahey, Holly Huddleston
Above left: Emily Garbutt,
Below left: Chandler Thomas.
The Vandegrift boys lost to Valley View Friday night 3-0 but not before claiming the title 4A Regional quarterfinal champs. The Vipers made it into the state's top 16 teams.
Left: Ryan Porch. Above Right: Drew Golden. Right Below: Brett Koster
Vandegrift High School’s Girls Track and Field team posted winning results at the District 25-4A Champi-onship meet held April 11-12 at Mus-tang Stadium and Leonel Manzano Track. Nikki Keys took top honors in both the 1600-Meter Run, finishing in 5 minutes, 23.76 seconds, and 3200-Me-ter Run (1,11:40.10), with Gretta Smith winning silver in the 1600 (2, 5:24.37) and bronze in the 3200 (3, 11:48.82). Aspen Andrew’s impressive 5-02 in the Women High Jump earned a bronze medal in the event. Keys, Smith and Andrew will advance to the upcoming regional competition. Top ten scoring varsity Lady Vi-pers included Caroline Zanot in the 800-Meter Run (7, 2:30.21), Brittany Brown in the 100-Meter Hurdles (6, 17.44) and Pole Vault (4, 8-00.00) and Andrews in the Discus Throw (5, 96-08). Top ten scoring junior varsity Lady Vipers included Patricia Nintcheu in the 100-Meter Dash (3, 13.82) and Julia Franklin in the Pole Vault (2, 7-06.00) and 300-Meter Hurdles (6, 52.51). Nintcheu topped the podium as District Champion in the Shot Put (1, 32-09.00) and Discus Throw (1, 104-05). Vandegrift’s JV Girls relay teams scored fifth place wins with the Girls 4x200 Meter Relay finish of 2:03.66 (Jasmine Blackmon, Kriston Guerra, Tatum Joines, Madeline Sabel) and the Girls 4x400 Meter Relay’s fast 4:57.97 (Julia Franklin, Kayla Olsen, Emery Galbrieth, Sydney Sabel).
By LES STOBARTContributor
In the Spring of 2011, Boerne Champion High School entered their third year of existence with their first ever senior class. Ten of those seniors were on the men’s soccer team and the Char-gers ended their third year as the state 4A Men’s Soccer Champi-ons. Flash forward to the Spring of 2012. Another school, the Vandegrift High School Vipers are completing their third year of existence and also have their first senior class. Last week on April 10 in New Braunfels, the two teams with on nearly paral-lel tracks faced one another in the fourth round of the playoffs. Vandegrift, wearing their home whites, started fast against the Chargers. In minute six, ju-nior Grant Wilburn sent a ball soaring past the outstretched hands of the Chargers goalie and into the upper left of the net. After only a few more minutes, thanks to the right foot of Jeff Willoughby, the Vipers found themselves up 2-0 against the defending state champs. Shortly before halftime, Vandegrift gave
one back and as the first half ended, Coach Chad Aldrich’s Vipers were up 2-1. Despite the Chargers spirited finish in the first, the second half belonged entirely to the Vipers. Vandegrift started the sec-ond half quickly and consis-tently showcased what’s driven their deep playoff run: pinpoint passing and extremely stingy defense. Led by the defense of senior Andrew LoCascio in the back, the Vipers thwarted the Chargers in second half and continuously prevented mean-ingful penetrations or shots. On the other end of the field, the Vipers wore down the Charger defense by seemingly maneu-vering the ball at will and earn-ing multiple shots on goal. Late in the second, another one of those shots hit home again. This time, freshman Ryan Porch buried the ball into the back of the net and for all intents and purposes, ended the playoff run for the Chargers. As the clock ticked towards zero, the Vandegrift fans counted down the anxious seconds and watched as their Vipers, defeat-ed the defending state champs.
There is something special about being a third year school ending up in the 4A State play-offs. Vandegrift played April 13 in Corpus Christi as part of the Sweet 16 of the Men’s State Soc-cer Tournament. They ended their season with a 3 - 0 loss in the 4A regional tournament to Valley View.
Vipers vanquish 4th round playoff foe on the road tobecome 4A Regional quarterfinal soccer champs
Photos by Glenn Golden
Viper Track and Field girls take podium at District Meet
Viper Girls Golf takes 3rd at district
Photos by Robin Garbutt
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Above: (front row, from left) Cindy Gallien, Katy Gallien; (back row, from left) Matt Gallien, Hunter Gallien.
Above Right: (front row, from left) James Gonzales, James Gonzales II; (back row, from left) Naomi Miller, Trinity Gonzales, Roxanne Gonzales; also in at-tendance Sylvia and Fernando Padilla.
Middle Right: (front row, from left) Cynthia Harris, Cameron Harris; (back row) Tarrence Har-ris.
Bottom Right: (front row, from left) Stephanie Jensen, Christo-pher Jensen; (back row) Emily Jensen.
CMYK
sPorts - signing day thursdayApril 19, 2012 • Page 9
Four Points newswww.FourPointsNews.com
By LESLEE BASSMANFour Points News
Vandegrift High School seniors Katy Gallien, James Gonzales, Cameron Harris and Topher Jensen signed National Letters of In-tent to continue their athletic careers at the university level on April 10. Gallien will travel out of state to play basketball for Arkansas’ Hendrix College and Jensen committed to run track for the United States Military Academy at West Point in New York. Both Gonzales and Harris will be playing football in Abilene, Texas, with Gonza-les at Abilene Christian Academy and Harris committing to Viper Football Head Coach Drew Sanders’ alma mater, Hardin-Simmons University.
Four more Vipers commit to college athletic programs
Photos by Leslee Bassman
Sports PHOTOSwanted!
Please help us cover Viper Sports by emailing shots of recent games! Thank you April Dang, John Lichtenberger and Mike Batek for your submissions this season.
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Form a Team with 2 to 4 schoolmates, neighbors or co-workers.
Register at www.RaceToTheTaste.com.Donate or Raise $250 to benefit the SELF 30
Program of Leander ISD and Concordia University Texas.
On Race Day, teams track down clues and perform challenges in pursuit of the
WINNER’S Circle located at the Four Points Home Depot.
The Four Points Home Depot (aka Race Central) will be filled with
Food, Beverage, Business and Entertainment booths featuring the Tastes of Four Points!
Register your TEAM or your VENDOR BOOTH today!
www.FourPointsChamber.com
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June 9, 2012 12 - 5pm
@ the Four Points Home Depot
The AMAZING FOUR POINTS
R A C Eto the
TASTE
Team Prizes include:1st Prize: iPad 3’s to each Team member2nd Prize: Android Tablets to each Team members3rd Prize: $100 Dinner/ Movie Gift Cards to each Team member
CMYKPage 10 • Four Points News, Thursday, April 19, 2012
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Four Points News is hosting a Mother’s Day Contest! Win a LakeHouse Half Day Away package for mom from Lake Austin Spa Resort! ($365 value) Draw a picture of your mom and tell us why she is so special in a few sentences.The winner will be picked ran-domly and featured in the paper as well as runner ups. Please scan and email your entry by May 1. Open to kids in the Four Points area. “May the odds be ever in your favor!” Email: [email protected]
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Photos by: Leslee Bassman
By LESLEE BASSMANFour Points News
Whereas many Four Points residents spent Sunday, April 15, working furiously on their 2011 tax returns, River Place dads busied themselves in the outdoors during the neigh-borhood’s annual ‘Dads in the Hood’ campout. This year, the development’s volunteers hosted almost 400 participants and over 150 fam-ilies, including some ‘ex-Pats’ from Steiner Ranch, during the two-day affair held in Sun Tree Park. Event Chairman Brian Scaff organized a slew of activi-ties including bungee jumping, petting zoo, tie-dye station, Capture the Flag game and a hamburger dinner catered by River Place Country Club as well as breakfast on Sunday morning. As coordinator of the event for a fourth year, Scaff added a photo booth, complete with costumes, and music by River Place’s Taco and the En-chiladas. “We’re having to deal a little with the wind (this year) but everyone’s having a great time,” said Scaff. “This is not a night for a good night’s sleep but for good times.”
River Place ‘Dads in the Hood’ relaxed, not taxed, on April 15
Above: River Place brothers Cristian (left) and Javi (right) Tellez meet a goat from Fry’s Fun Farm at the neighborhood’s annual ‘Dads in the Hood’ campout.
Above: River Place dads and family enjoy the cool breezes at their campsite on Saturday. From left: Mark Chase, Gary Nunes, Dave O’Connell, Fred Nunes (“Paw Paw”), David Nunes.
Above: Showing off at the photo booth are (from left) Noah Morales, Brianne Morales, Lillie Morales, Charlie Morman, Justin Yu and Alex Morman. Right: Steiner Ranch resident Marc Harrison sets up camp with daughter Paige at River Place’ Sun Tree Park. “That’s what’ so cool about this,” said Harrison. “They allow everybody to participate in this.”
Below: Six-year-old Kirsten Tjelmeland gets a little air during the recent ‘Dads in the Hood’ camp out in Sun Tree Park.
Bottom Right: River Place residents and guests enjoy a tie dye session during the ‘Dads in the Hood’ campout.
